Fearful
by Moon Kitty 2005
Summary: INCOMPLETE: A secret held within an abused servant girl & a prince who never expected to fall in love. A girl that's relocated thinks her new masters will abuse her. Ryou must prove her wrong. RetasuRyou, MintoKeiichiro AU, Chapter 9 Up, Please R & R..
1. Prologue: Kidnapping

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Prologue: Kidnapping**

**April 8th, 2007**

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Shimmering emerald hair bobbed atop a young head as a little girl no more than seven walked along the stone path, pushing her glasses up as the sweat made them slide down the bridge of her nose.

The scent of incense and flowers filled the air, cherry blossom trees shedding their petals and covering the ground in a lightly scented blanket. Midorikawa Retasu had always loved this particular part of the hill. Though it was a cemetary, it always looked so pretty and sacred, and she had to admit that when she was littler, she felt she had no reason to be there. But now she did.

Kneeling at an ornate-looking marker, she ran her trembling fingers over the name engraved on the stone, placing the bouquet of flowers she clutched at the base. Her beloved father, taken away from her early from a disease that most doctors did not know how to cure. So here she was, stuck all by herself, her mother having died years before during childbirth.

She had no idea what she was supposed to do now. Not only was she an orphan, but now she was being forced to live by herself, support herself, everything. She was also forced to lie to people who might inquire where her parents were. Knowing that Retasu despised orphanages and being a close family friend, the priest who had buried her father agreed not to let anyone know that her father had passed away.

He had told her he would occasionally bring by enough money to get necessities and food. He was just that kind of person. Always giving instead of receiving. Although he knew that lying wasn't a very religious thing to do, but in her time of need and confusion, he knew that they would both be forgiven.

He couldn't imagine how hard it would be for the poor little girl who was not only orphaned, but now was being forced to fend for herself in a world that wasn't too friendly towards youngsters.

Retasu sighed and wiped a tear from her cheek. She could do it. Though she was young, she knew that she could live without her father and mother. She was a strong person. She would make it through. With the priest's help and her inner will, she knew she could support herself.

Glancing once more at her father's headstone, she stood, brushed the dirt off of the hem of her dress, and began the long, lonely walk back to her house. Yes, it was her house now. The house that she had been born in and the house that she would grow up in.

After exiting the cemetary, she walked silently along the crowded streets of the market square. Women were bustling around with their children who looked no more older than herself. And yet she could feel tears gathering in her eyes. This was the life she was going to be forced to live. No parents to support her.

Why did her father have to die? Why did he leave her when she was so young and vunerable? Now, because her father left, she would not be able to live the normal life of a child. She would be forced to mature beyond her years before she even reached adolescence.

The priest had told her constantly during the small funeral that it was not her father's fault, nor hers. But she still felt bitter toward the death and seeming abandonment of her father. He had also told her that she would understand when she was older, but something told her that she never would.

She opened the squeaky door to their house and closed it behind her, shuffling her small feet on the rug and slipping her shoes off, looking around sadly at the empty, unlively house. This was what she was being forced to look forward to every day?

No sand castles, no swings, no snuck ice cream after school lessons, no hopscotch with classmates. She was only seven... but turning into an adult so quickly.

Heading into the kitchen, she opened the cabinets that she could reach and saw nothing but dust. _No food down here_, she thought, waddling over to fetch a chair from the kitchen table, dragging it over to the counter so she could see what was in the upper cabinets. All that was left was a loaf of bread and some crackers.

The priest had told her that he would be by the following day to give her some money to go to the market, and had warned her not to spend it on foolish things. So there went her candy, her sweets, her toys... and as she thought of toys, she thought of birthdays, Christmas, holidays that were supposed to spend with her family... but now she was facing them alone.

Scuffling the chair back into its place at the table, she nibbled quietly at a cracker, the only sound besides her chewing in the room was the clicking of the large clock that sat on the wall adjacent from the dining room table. With each tick, with each tock, something stabbed deeper into her heart, and as she swallowed the stale food, she began to cry.

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**3 Years Later**

10-year-old Retasu Midorikawa smiled at the priest, clutching the money he handed her thankfully in her small, fragile palm. She nodded as he shook her hand and kissed her forehead, scuffling away from the doorway without a single word. The priest had been concentrating on not speaking for a whole 40 days, and only used sign language when he needed to say something.

Poor Retasu was as thin as ever, and still suffering. Though taking a part-time job at the local market did help with food and the upkeep of the house, and learning how to sew from her boss helped with the upkeep of her clothes, she still felt as if something amazing was about to happen to her. She didn't know what, and she didn't know when, but she hoped it was soon.

She couldn't live like this much longer.

But most of all, she was fearful for herself. Lately, the neighboring village and her own had been in some sort of squabble. She wasn't sure wholly what it was about, but she knew inside that she had no desire to find out. More than once the people next door had threatened to pillage and burn down the village if Retasu's did not comply to their demands. She was only ten, so she didn't keep up with it much. She was much too busy. But she wasn't surprised when she heard the neighing of horses outside her house and the smell of burned houses and ash filling the air.

She had first awoken to the smell, but simply thought it was nothing, cuddling further in her bed and covering herself with the thin blanket. But then she was awoken later as a loud scream sounded from outside, frighteningly close to her own house. She threw the blankets off her bed, immediately coughing as smoke filled the house.

She couldn't see anything in front of her and she began to panic. What if they were burning her house down? What if they were going to kill her, rape her, leave her trapped in this burning house?

Before she could worry about anything like that, the thick nature of the smoke and the beat of the club against her small skull made her fall unconscious, oblivious to the men that carried her from the house and rode away, leaving the house burning in the background.

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She forced her eyes open with a considerable amount of effort, blinking fiercely as the dim light even hurt her emerald eyes, her vision swimming. Her head throbbed, her mouth felt dry, and her wrists were tied behind her back, her skin feeling raw and bruised. She was lying on her side, and as she tried to open her eyes to get a look at her surroundings, she sighed.

_Might as well open them a little at a time_, she thought, but every time she caught light her head pounded even harder. _Where am I?_ Suddenly she felt scared. Every bit of maturity that she had acquired over the past three years flew out the window as her child-like instincts kicked into gear.

She struggled against her bonds, wincing as they cut deeper into the soft skin of her wrist. Stopping movement as something moved toward her, she inched her eyes open little by little, ignoring the pain in her head, trying to decide if that thing was there to kill her.

Noting the way a cold wet rag swept across her face, she guessed not.

"Such a small, pretty one," a matronly woman's voice said softly. The rag swept across Retasu's cheek, and she squeezed her eyes shut voluntarily. "Much too young to be sold into slavery, I'd say."

"SLAVERY?!" Retasu cried, lurching herself into a sitting position, but promptly lying back on her side as her head felt like it had been beat against a wall a million times.

"Oh, you poor dear," the woman frowned, slipping a small pillow made from hay and cotton under her head. "I guess you don't know. You've been unconscious for about 3 days. The men who took you from your village? They sold you, to Princess Ichigo. That's where you are right now. Her castle."

"Princess? Ichigo? Who is she?" she managed to get out, wincing as the woman pulled out a knife and cut the ropes from her wrists. Inwardly, she wondered why she didn't do that sooner. She wanted to ask, but her throat was so raw. Luckily, the woman noticed the constant licking of her lips and stood to get her a glass of water.

"She's the person who owns us. We serve her. She's a dreadful thing, honestly. Always hitting and screeching and bossing us around. Though we are here to be bossed around, we aren't here to be used as her vent for anger."

Retasu sipped the cold water, sat up with the woman's help, and leaned against the wall, staring at her surroundings. Now not only had her parents died, she had been kidnapped, knocked unconscious, and sold into slavery to supposedly living evil, if the woman had described the princess correctly.

_So much for the wonderful thing that's supposed to happen to me_, she thought bitterly.

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Authoress Notes

Wow, what a really long prologue. I've never written a prologue _that_ long. Hopefully my chapters are as long or even longer. But please let me know if you liked it! I really hope you did. No one seems to write RetasuRyou AU stories, so I'm kinda going out on a limb here. People did seem to like 'Swim', though. So hopefully you'll like this, too. Let me know! Till next chapter! (:


	2. Chapter 1: Greetings & Cruelty

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter One (Greetings and Cruelty)**

**May 2nd, 2007**

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**5 Years Later**

There was the normal hustle and bustle of the kitchen as all of the kitchen servants milled about, some cooking scrumptious-looking bread or apple pies, some cleaning old dirty stoves, and some carving the meat that had been cooked.

15-year-old Midorikawa Retasu laughed as one of the older servants tried to tickle her. She never thought that she would find such companionship among the other servants of Princess Ichigo's castle.

Over the past 5 years she had been there, she had learned just exactly what the servants had been talking about when they had called Princess Ichigo evil. She was constantly yelling at her, and would break things on purpose just so Retasu would have to clean them up.

The woman who Retasu had met in the beginning had told her that the Princess was merely angry at her because Retasu was prettier than she was. Of course, Retasu had laughed and denied it.

Retasu still had the shimmering emerald hair, but had decided instead to plait the bottom half into two long braids. Her matching eyes shone brightly behind old, scratched glasses. She was still slightly skinnier than normal, but had filled out quite a bit. Her breasts were of average size, and her hips flared out a bit more than Princess Ichigo's. Her legs were long and curvy, and when she felt like it, could sing so beautifully it brought tears to other's eyes.

Everyone except Princess Ichigo.

One day when Retasu was outside weeding the gardens, she had begun to sing, and apparently Princess Ichigo had overheard it. She had told Retasu she could never sing in her presence again. So Retasu would just sing at night in her bed, and it would never disturb the other servants that shared a room with her. They enjoyed her singing so much that they fell asleep to it.

And when Atsuko's newborn baby would cry, Retasu simply had to sing to her to make her fall sound asleep again.

Needless to say, all the fellow servants loved her to death. And she them.

The large oak doors that led to the busy kitchen swung open and a servant known as Fuko poked his head in. "Retasu!"

She spun around and smiled. "Yeah?"

"Princess Ichigo is calling for you to greet her. Kenshin rode here before her and said she'll be here in only a minute. You must hurry outside or she'll be angry."

Nodding and apologizing to the woman she was cooking with, she hitched up the dirty old outfit she was wearing and left the kitchen, running through the halls, wincing as her feet hit the hard stone repeatedly. The servants weren't even permitted to have shoes, and were only allowed to keep an outfit that strongly resembled a potato sack.

Smiling at the door guards as they pushed it open for her, she ran outside and stood nervously on the bottom stair. The servants were not allowed to stand taller than Princess Ichigo or she would have them lashed. Retasu had learned that the hard way. She shivered as she remembered having been whipped in the horse stables and left out there all night, her back bleeding fiercely. She still had the scars.

The fancy carriage rattled up the cement pathway, and Retasu winced. All the fancy silver and gold plating that was on the carriage glared with the light of the sun. Princess Ichigo had always been too fancy. She required the best food, the comfiest satin bedcovers, the most expensive clothes. Retasu knew she had been spoiled from birth. Perhaps if her parents had not spoiled her, she wouldn't be the way she was now.

When the carriage pulled up, Princess Ichigo stepped out with a flourish, yelling at the carriage driver because he had not extended his hand. The Princess was pretty enough, with shoulder-length red hair pulled up into two small pigtails and piercing gray eyes. She was slender and had rosy cheeks. She would be considered beautiful if it were not for her horrible attitude.

"Good afternoon, Your Highness," Retasu said, bowing deeply as the Princess stepped down from the carriage steps. "I trust your experience in the marketplace was most pleasurable?"

The girl scoffed and snapped her fingers, the carriage driver mumbling under his breath as he was forced to walk to the back of the carriage to retrieve her suitcase. Why anyone had to pack to go out for just a couple of hours was beyond Retasu's understanding. "Don't even pretend like you care if I had a nice afternoon, slave. I know you hate me. Take my things and follow me upstairs. And if I even hear one word of complaint from you, you will feel my wrath just like that night I had you whipped like a common horse. Come, fool." And with her nose high in the air, she flounced away.

Trying to control her anger, she smiled and grabbed the suitcase from the carriage driver, whispering a quick 'hello' before following the Princess up the staircase. As they entered the castle and began climbing up the stairs, Retasu couldn't help but wonder what life would be like if the Princess were nicer.

Perhaps she wouldn't hate serving her so much.

As they reached her room, Princess Ichigo stopped and waited with her arms crossed while Retasu tried to juggle her suitcase while attempting to open the door. Not only that, she had to hold the door open for her while she walked in. Servants were not permitted to enter a room before royalty.

Setting the suitcase down on the floor, she swiped her bangs away from her face and opened it, picking up a dress that she had never seen before. Perhaps the Princess had gone shopping? Then again, she probably had a whole other room filled with dresses that she didn't need.

This was another thing that irked Retasu. She spent millions of dollars on dresses every month, but still couldn't afford to get the servants anything nicer as uniforms. The maids were allowed to wear cute little skirts and aprons, and the butlers were allowed uniforms with crisp white ties. The only way the servants were allowed to wear anything resembling nice was if they snuck down to the river after the Princess was asleep and washed their clothes and themselves.

Why did they sneak out to do it? If the Princess found out the servants were leaving their duties to bathe and wash their clothes, she would be furious. She believed that servants were supposed to work 24/7. She didn't allow them to go to bed until after she did, which was around 11 PM, and would make them wake up a few hours before she did, which was at 6 AM.

Needless to say, the servants were run down. They would only get a few hours of sleep every night, their clothes and bodies would remain dirty for weeks at a time, and they were barely fed enough, even though the Princess herself would require a long table full of lavish foods, and would order them to be thrown away. She even had guards to protect the food she had thrown away to make sure that the servants didn't eat any.

Walking over to the large armoire in the corner of the room, she began to hang up the dress when the Princess walked over and spun her around, smacking her across the face.

"Don't put that there!" she spat vehemently, pointing to her closet all the way across the room. "Put it in there, you stupid girl! And if I find one spot of dirt on that fabric, you're dead, do you hear? Go before I smack you again!"

As Retasu began to walk across the room, the Princess scoffed and left the room, and it was only when she was gone that she allowed a few tears to slip from her face. Of course, she was used to being smacked. Princess Ichigo did it to her a lot. But it was the humiliation she hated. There was nothing more that she disliked than being called stupid.

She wasn't stupid. She was actually a very bright girl. Akiko, the woman who had taken care of her and taught her how to do certain things when she first arrived, had told her so.

_**"You're such a fast learner!" the woman declared, clapping her hands together in delight. "It's going to be fun teaching you new things!"**_

Once she had hung the expensive-looking dress, she wiped the tears from her cheeks. She was strong. Just like the experience with her father and mother, she knew she could handle it. She was only fifteen... but she knew so much about the world she felt much older.

Princess Ichigo's personal maid popped her head in the room and looked around for a second, then as she saw Retasu, hissed, "What is a dirty servant like yourself doing in Princess Ichigo's room? And alone, at that? Get out before I have your hands chopped off. You probably stole something."

Retasu stepped out of the room and tried not to cry once again as the maid stared her down. As the other girl spun around, she purposely stepped on Retasu's foot and walked down the hallway, muttering under her breath.

Fresh tears began to fall from Retasu's eyes, and as she walked down the hall, she thought about all the times she had been threatened. _Why did things have to end up this way?_ she wondered.

The weirdest thing was, she wanted to leave, but she didn't. When her father had died, she was by herself. But now, she was here with her friends, even though she was being forced to serve Princess Ichigo.

Confusion sucked.

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Authoress Notes

Yay, another long chapter! I love long chapters, don't you? Let me know what you thought. Whether it ran on or was interesting, okay? Till next time!


	3. Chapter 2: Nightmares & Illness

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Two (Nightmares and Illness)**

**August 6th, 2007**

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The darkness clouded her. It was all she could see, could breathe, could feel as she travelled farther into the void in which her mind had created. Before her, visions of things that had happened in the past flashed before her. She wondered why these things were taunting her now. Her father smiled at her, and she smiled back, reaching out to touch his hand, but he dissolved and what her hand touched was a ball of fire, the fire that was rising up from her smoking house.

She watched a younger version of herself be carried out of the house, unconscious, and screamed at the top of her lungs in an attempt to wake herself up, but to no avail. Nothing came from her throat and she began to cry, tears slipping down her cheeks to mesh into the black floor around her. Suddenly... there was nothing around but black.

She could hear nothing. Even her sobs were making no noise.

Then a feminine voice called, "Retasu."

She glanced up, and mouthed the word 'mother', once again reaching for a hand that was her parent's. But apparently she wasn't supposed to, because her mother shook her head and stepped away at the last second, and Retasu's emerald eyes snapped open as a wet, cold feeling poured over her.

Sitting up in her bed, first she glanced at Princess Ichigo standing by her bed in a huff, looking livid, a red bucket clasped firmly in her hands. Then, her eyes trailed over to her legs and torso, noting that Princess Ichigo had indeed dumped a bucket of cold ice water all over herself and her bed.

Feeling a seething type of anger welling in her chest but knowing she could do nothing about it, she turned and left her bed, bowing deeply. "Princess Ichigo, I am terribly sorry I did not get up on time."

The other girl sneered and threw the bucket down. "I don't have need for your apologies. I have told all the other slaves to vacate the kitchens. Change your clothes, you scum, and get in there. Guess who's going to be cleaning it?" With a flourish, she huffed and left the room.

Crawling out of her bed, she sighed and began to take off her wet cloth that the Princess liked to call "sleepwear". She knew that the princess had someone standing outside her door timing her and if she didn't get out of her cubicle before the time ran up that she was going to be whipped for taking so long.

Princess Ichigo never did this to any of the other servants, but there was something deep inside of her that hated Midorikawa Retasu with a passion.

Throwing on her working clothes, she quickly re-plaited her hair before stepping out of her room, throwing a sidelong glance at the person that was standing outside her door, just as she had predicted.

The walk to the kitchens was a short one; whenever Princess Ichigo had company she would have Retasu report to the kitchens to slave away on making apple pies, which just happened to be her specialty.

Once reaching her destination, she grabbed a rag, and sighing grudgingly, began scrubbing away at the tiles of the wall. There was not a fire lit, and the room was dim, making it kind of eerie. A chill passed through her and she sniffled a little, raising her other hand to scrub harder at the tile.

She contemplated building a fire in the hearth, but she knew that if Princess Ichigo had sent one of her maids into the kitchens to check on her, they would report it to her and then she would come throw a fit, and Retasu really didn't feel like dealing with her right now.

She sneezed a little, wiping her bangs away from her forehead as she continued to clean. _Things just couldn't get any better_, she thought sadly. _Why did I have to be kidnapped? I wish a Prince Charming would just come and sweep me off my feet._

About a half an hour later, Retasu was feeling quite woozy and she couldn't stop sniffling. The first half of the kitchens was sparkling clean, but she didn't think she could finish the other half. She was leaning back against the counter when the door open and Retasu's long friend, Minto, stepped in and smiled when she saw her.

"Hey, I heard from Mariko that you had the kitchens today all by yourself. I just wanted to make sure you were okay."

Retasu shook her head and sneezed again. "Princess Ichigo poured water on me this morning to wake me up and didn't let me dry off. Now I feel like I have a cold," she sighed. "I don't feel very good."

Minto walked over and threw one of Retasu's arms over her shoulder. "Let's go to Princess Ichigo and ask if you can take a break for a while... I know she probably won't let you, but it's worth a shot."

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"No!"

Retasu looked down, feeling nausea overcome her. She had a feeling that she was going to pass out. She felt feverish and her hands were extremely clammy. "Your Highness, all I'm asking for is a repreive. I'm not asking to get out of my job. I can finish it later; I just don't feel well right now."

"I refuse to let any servant of mine rest, under any circumstances. There was a reason you were brought here to be my slave and if you think that you're going to get any special privileges just because you are feeling a little under the weather, you've got another thing coming," the Princess sneered. "Just for that little show of defiance, you have a new assignment. Get out to the stables and clean up after the horses... you are allowed no cloak and you are not allowed back inside the castle until every stable is clean, every horse watered and fed, and every bale of hay stacked neatly atop the other."

Minto stepped forward. "But Your Highness!" she protested, pointing towards outside. "It's under 50 degrees out there! She'll catch her death of cold!"

The Princess merely held up a hand and said, "Then maybe she shouldn't have presumed that I would be so careless as to let her rest. Well, Retasu? Get to it. I don't have all day."

Retasu glanced up gratefully at her friend, silently thanking her with her expression for the little outburst, though it did her no good. As she turned to leave, the Princess called, "Oh, and Retasu? If I find you resting... even for a bit, I shall have your hide whipped all the way into next year. Do I make myself clear?"

Not even bothering to turn around, Retasu squared her shoulders and marched from the room.

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Once out in the stables, Retasu knew her determination would be short-lived. Not even 10 feet from the warmth of the castle did she realize how cold it really was, and her teeth were chattering as she made her way slowly to the stables on the far east side of the castle.

She knew she had her work cut out for her. Not only was there over 2 dozen horses, but the stablehand was incredibly lazy when it came to cleaning out all of their stalls, and because the Princess seemed to have a soft spot for him, she let him off every time with a simple warning.

And the way he looked at Retasu whenever she came to the stables was enough to set her skin crawling. His beady little eyes stared at her with the blankest expression ever, and yet she seemed to feel that there was some kind of ulterior motive in his gaze. He never said anything to her, though, just simply watched her. He certainly was a creepy individual.

Luckily, when she reached the stables today, she realized that he wasn't in the stables, or at least nowhere to be seen. She slid the thin metal door closed behind her, hoping that that would stifle some of the heat in, but the stables had not been repaired in years and there was slight rust and holes in some of the surrounding walls.

Grabbing the hay shovel and a small bag of feed from the closet near the tack room, she filled the first horses' food dish and began shoveling dirty hay into a pile outside the stall.

Willing her mind to focus on something other than the bone-chilling cold, she kept shoveling, even managing after a while to hum a soft tune under her breath. But after she had finished the first stall, she had begun to shiver, light trails of cold seeping under her thin dress and soaking into her flesh.

Sweat was dripping into her eyes... or were those tears? Suddenly as she looked up she could no longer tell what was what, and she felt extremely delusional. She reached out beside her to steady herself on the thin metal separator that led to the next stall, but instead found empty air.

She had lost consciousness before she even hit the ground.

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Authoress Notes

Yes, I know it's been forever since I've written! I lost my passion for a bit, but then for some reason, I got the urge to read fanfiction, and then I saw my mailbox was overflowing and there were a bunch of people who wanted me to update, so... I decided to start writing again. It's fun again! Thanks to all who inspired me.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter. See you next time.


	4. Chapter 3: Whipping & Running

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Three (Whipping and Running)**

**October 28th, 2007**

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There was a light... she could tell that much, but it was struggling to lift her eyelids to the light that was the major problem. She could feel the slight fizzle and then the sudden pounding of her head as the light hit her retinas, and slowly, as her eyelids fluttered open, she could make out the face of the kindly doctor and that of her worried friend, Minto.

She cleared her throat and was grateful when Minto reached an arm behind her back, supporting her as she took a couple sips from a glass of lukewarm water. "What happened? Last thing I remember, I was in the stables cleaning them."

Minto frowned. "Apparently, your fever got so bad that you fainted. We didn't find you until at least a half an hour later, and by then, you were already so far gone that you were delirious. You've been unconscious for almost 3 days now."

Retasu jumped up quickly. "Three days?!" she gasped, running a hand through her hair. "Are you kidding? The princess is going to be furious with me!"

"She already is," Minto grimaced. "She's been ranting and raving about it ever since we found you in the stables and she says she plans on giving you a good whipping as soon as you wake up. I was told to sit here and wait and as soon as you got up to tell you to report to the dungeon."

Retasu sighed and looked up at her friend. It wasn't like she blamed her or anything. Orders were orders and she supposed it was her own fault. If she had gathered up enough willpower to not faint then she wouldn't have to be punished at first. But her body had just shut down on her. There was nothing she could do.

She threw the blankets from her feet and Minto rushed to her side, helping her steady herself as she took the first few wobbly steps. Giving a silent nod, she walked out of the room and toward the dungeons, accepting her punishment.

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The princess looked up as the scum entered the room, and she smirked as she noticed the hollow look on the other girl's face. It was just the look she preferred. Most of the time when Retasu looked at her it was one of contempt, one of determination, inner strength.

Now she looked as if she was going to forfeit, to give up any semblance of perseverance she had had right there. Ichigo loved that expression.

As the girl drew closer, she simply pointed to a wooden device in the middle of the room. Retasu obediently pulled off her dress, leaving her in just her small cotten shift. She stepped onto a wooden block and held her arms out, the man with the whip attached to his belt tying her arms to the wooden poles on either side of her.

The man then walked to the opposite side, pulling the whip from his belt, and as Retasu bit down on her own jaw, Ichigo giggled as she heard the leather whipping across her soft flesh.

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Ichigo had called Minto down to the study, informing her that they were done in the dungeons and she could go collect her 'slimy little friend'. Walking down to the dungeons, Minto was appalled to see Retasu barely standing, her dress half-on, blood seeping through.

She ran over and held her up, helping her put the rest of her dress on, trying her best not to touch the wounds on her back that she knew would leave horrible scars for the rest of her life.

"Come on, Retasu."

Once they finally reached their small bedroom, Minto took off the dress again carefully and laid her down on her stomach, fetching a bowl of hot water, a soft rag, and some salve, and as Retasu lay there crying herself to sleep, Minto cleansed the lashes.

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It was dark. It was all she could see, was just the dark. Something in the back of her mind tugged at her, telling her that this was a too-familiar scene. The longer she stared, the more and more prominent a blurry figure became.

Her throat closed as she stared straight into the emerald eyes of her mother. Tears filled her eyes as she could distinctly feel the warm palm of her mother's hand cup her cheek. "Retasu... my dear, you must leave. Things are getting increasingly violent as the days pass. I do not wish for any harm to come to you. You must flee before things progress and you end up losing your life."

The young girl swallowed hard, looking forlorn. "If I try to run, she will surely catch me and then I _would_ end up dead."

"It's better if you had tried than to have not attempted at all. There is something better out there for you, Retasu. I can't tell you exactly what... but slavery is _not_ it. Run away and give yourself the chance to be happy. That's all you need do."

Her mother's form faded away after giving her daughter a slight kiss on the cheek. As Retasu sighed, her eyes snapped open and she found herself staring at the ceiling of her dark room. It was time. Retasu knew that she could stay there no longer. Her mother was right. Her life would be taken. She had no doubt that it was a possibility. The princess hated her with such a passion that she was sure it was. It was only a matter of time.

Throwing the thin scratchy wool blanket from her body, she reached under her bed for the potato sack she had hidden just in case she had needed to steal food from the kitchens or just in case she had ever gathered enough courage to do exactly what she was planning to do. She tried hard to ignore the ache and the fresh pain of her back, but it was throbbing.

Now might not be the best time to run away, but she needed to be strong. Eventually the pain would subside and she could go about a normal life being _happy_.

Minto had decidedly heard the commotion next door and knocked softly, coming in when Retasu muttered a soft "Yeah?". When she saw that Retasu was throwing what few things she had in her bag, she sighed and said, "You're leaving, aren't you?"

Retasu begged Minto to understand. "I can't stay here. I don't want to end up dead in the long run. There's something better for me out there, and I'm going to find it."

There was a short silence and then Minto squared her petite shoulders. "I'm going with you."

Retasu looked up at her best friend with a bewildered expression and there was a silent question in her emerald eyes.

"I'm not going to just sit back and watch one of the only friends I've ever had just walk away without knowing what's in her future. I want to be there for you, to help you... most of all, I want to get the hell out of here too. I'll go pack my things and then ask Keiichiro if he wants to come with. Then we can go to the kitchens and steal some bread and cheese from the locked pantry. Keiichiro is the only one I know with a spare key and a map through the forest to get us out of here."

Retasu could hardly believe it. Minto seemed to have it all planned out, and suddenly her dream was taking reality right before her eyes. She nodded silently and as Minto left the room, she unplaited her hair and tied it back in just one long braid, then into a bun. She was going to need all the freedom she could get.

About an hour later, Minto returned to Retasu's room with a bag half-full of her personal belongings and Keiichiro on her arm. Keiichiro was one of the main cooks, and it was well-known to Retasu that they liked each other. They just hadn't said anything. Keiichiro was holding a sack in his hand as well, and even now, Retasu could smell the savory lure of the bread. Her stomach growled, but she knew now was no time to be thinking about dinner.

"Well then," she said quaveringly. "Perhaps we should be on our way."

There was a slight nod of affirmation between the group, and then they slipped from the servant's quarters quieter than a pack of mice.

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Once they had left the castle, they crept along the castle grounds in single file, scarcely breathing in fear that they would disturb the guards. There were always three guards stationed around the edges of the forest to make sure no wild animals got in and no slaves got out. But this night, they were lucky.

One of the guards had wandered off, another had fallen asleep, and the other one was all the way at the end of the other side, and even had his back turned.

The three figures slipped silently into the woods, taking special care not to step on any plants or twigs, staying on the freshly raked path. The guard thought he had heard something and peered into the forest from the opposite side, but by the time he had looked, there was nothing there.

They were free.

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Authoress Notes

I'm not dead, I swear it! Truth be told, I stopped writing for a couple weeks, and then when I got the urge to write again, I HAD FORGOTTEN MY SN & PW. So I was pretty much screwed. But I figured it out now. So I'm happy. Now that I remember it, updates will be coming more often, promise. Hope you enjoyed. Bye!


	5. Chapter 4: Wolves & Attacks

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Four (Wolves & Attacks)**

**December 20th, 2007**

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**2 days later**

All three of them were exhausted, and none of them had anticipated how wide the expanse of the forest actually was. They had been walking nearly nonstop the past 48 hours and none of them knew exactly how long they would have to continue. Retasu had wanted to ask Keiichiro countless times if they could stop and rest and sleep for longer than an hour at a time, but she knew that the answer was no even before she asked.

They couldn't stop for too long at a time because they didn't know if Ichigo had sent out guards to try to find them, and if she had, how far behind they were.

For now, they had stopped at a small clearing and Keiichiro was breaking off small pieces of bread and cheese to pass around. Retasu could feel the blisters on her feet throbbing & her legs shaking from their lack of rest.

Retasu was usually such a strong person, and she didn't know why she felt like throwing everything up and just forgetting it. She knew it would be hard, but she didn't know the kind of toll it would take on her body.

She reached forward to grab the cheese and bread Keiichiro was extending to her, and she groaned inwardly as her arm muscles protested. Sighing and taking a small bite into the bread, she looked at the two people sitting across from her. "I'm really sorry I dragged you guys into this... I should have just gone on my own."

Minto stared at her for a second and then shook her head fiercely. "Retasu, you're my friend. There's no way I'm going to let you wander off alone in here. Who knows what kind of dangers you could have run into? And as for this oaf," she paused, nudging Keiichiro lightly with her elbow. "I have no idea why he decided to tag along."

Retasu could swear she saw a slight blush gracing Keiichiro's face, but he didn't say anything as he continued to eat. She smiled inwardly and wondered why Minto didn't realize it when it was staring her so boldly in the face.

There was a quiet silence between the three of them as they finished their impromptu dinner. As Keiichiro moved to put the rest of the bread and cheese back into the knapsack, there was a low growl and a slight rustle from one of the bushes nearby. All three of them turned their heads slowly, and laid widened eyes on a wolf who was not a mere 5 meters away, his teeth bared and his fur standing on end.

"No one move," Keiichiro breathed, speaking just above a whisper. "He most likely smelled our food and came over to get some."

Retasu took her eyes off of the wolf for just a second, taking a quick glance at the bread that was left over. "Keiichiro," she whispered, fixing her emerald eyes back on the creature. "Throw him that last piece of bread and then we can make our escape."

"Are you crazy?" Minto hissed. "After that bread, all we have left is a small block of cheese. There's no way we can survive on just that with the three of us. We have no idea how big this forest is."

Keiichiro shoot his head a scant inch, his eyes still fixed on the wolf. "Retasu is right. If we throw him the bread, it might create just enough of a distraction to slip away before we get attacked and _we_ become his dinner."

Reaching slowly for the piece of bread, the wolf's ears perked up and he took a step forward, his low growl raising an octave, eyes trained on Keiichiro's moving hand. As the wolf was moving forward, Keiichiro suddenly whipped his arm back and threw the piece of bread, sending the wolf after it. "Quick! Grab your knapsacks and let's get out of here!"

Throwing the sacks over their shoulders, all three of them got up and started to run from the clearing. For a moment, they thought they had gotten away, but there was a rustling behind them and the pounding of paws on the earth, and they looked over their shoulders to see that the wolf was indeed following them... and he looked extremely vicious.

"I think we made him angrier!" Minto cried, almost tripping over her own two feet.

All three of them felt like collapsing. They had barely eaten, barely drank, and barely rested for the past two days. As they ran down the path, trying to escape the rabid wolf, they realized that they were going to be caught unless they did something.

A couple seconds later, there was a loud _**thump!**_ from behind Keiichiro and Retasu, and they both turned around to see that Minto had collapsed from sheer exhaustion. After all, she was smaller and more fragile. The wolf was quickly advancing on her, and Keiichiro darted to the side of the path to break a large branch off of a nearby tree.

"AHH! Help!" Minto cried, shielding her face with her hands.

Retasu watched in shocked horror as the wolf came upon Minto, digging his fangs right into her leg. Minto screamed in pain, trying to stay perfectly still. She knew that if she moved, the wounds would possibly go deeper or would tear and cause even more damage.

"Get away from her!" Keiichiro yelled, swinging the branch at the wolf. Luckily, he released her leg and backed up a bit, and Retasu ran forward and used all the strength she had left to pick Minto up and move her away.

Keiichiro swung repeatedly, finally connecting as the branch cracked across the animal's skull. The wolf snarled one final time, and then disappeared into the bushes once again.

He dropped the branch, and panting, quickly joined Retasu at Minto's side. "How bad is it?" he asked sadly, looking at the girl. She had apparently fallen into unconsciousness from the shock and pain.

Retasu shook her head, tearing a piece of material from her clothes to wrap the wound. "It's pretty deep, from the looks of it, and it won't stop bleeding. We're going to have to dress it properly soon or it'll get infected." She tied the piece of cloth tight, hoping that that would stem the flow of blood temporarily.

"I'll carry her the rest of the way," he stated, picking her up and putting her on his back.

"Are you sure you're strong enough to do that? I don't want you collapsing on me, too."

Keiichiro shook his head. "I'll be fine, don't worry about it."

As they continued to walk down the path, it was around sunset that Minto finally regained consciousness, and she rested her head on Keiichiro's shoulder. "You finally awake?" he asked, shifting her a bit to get a better hold.

She nodded and then winced. "Yes. My leg hurts so bad."

Retasu looked at the two of them and then looked forward, tears gathering in the corner of her eyes. "I'm so sorry, you two."

"Eh?" they both asked simultaneously.

"This is all my fault," Retasu sniffled, stopping and covering her face with her hands. "If I wouldn't have let you two come along with me, this might not have happened, and Minto would be fine."

Keiichiro stepped closer to the crying girl and Minto laid a hand on her shoulder. "Retasu, how many times do we have to tell you this? We came because we're your friends. Just think about it, if you had come alone, that would have happened to you, and it might have been _you_ who was attacked. Then you would have been out here all alone, and you probably would have died."

Retasu looked up at her friend tearfully. "I would rather have been bitten than you, though."

Minto smiled. "I trust your decisions. I believe that we'll make it out of here soon. And I believe that we'll be living a better life than we did before. I have no regrets. This is an adventure, so believe that we'll be okay."

"Everything happens for a reason," Keiichiro stated. "This will make all of us stronger in the long run, because we know we can overcome anything."

"Have more faith in yourself, Retasu," Minto murmured, laying her head on Keiichiro's shoulder again. "I'm feeling sleepy..."

Slowly nodding her head and wiping the tears from her eyes, Retasu gave them both a smile of encouragement. "You guys are right. I'm sure we'll be fine!"

Minto giggled a bit. "That's the Retasu we know. Now, I'm going to sleep." Her eyes slid closed, and sure enough, not a moment later she was fast asleep.

Retasu took Keiichiro's knapsack so he could carry Minto more effectively, and they both exchanged a smile before continuing down the path.

_I just have to believe, _Retasu thought. _And I believe in them. They helped me get this far, after all. I'm confident that there's something great in all of our futures._

And as the sun began to set, they trekked on.

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Authoress Notes

Sorry it took me so long to update. There have been a lot of things happening, and I've found myself losing inspiration again. I'm sorry if the chapters seem shotty or weird, I'm just not feeling like writing right now. But I felt bad because I promised myself I would update once a month, and I've been neglecting it. Review, nya:D


	6. Chapter 5: Searching & Finding

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Five (Searching and Finding)**

**January 20th, 2008**

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The next day, they were all gathered in another clearing, and Keiichiro and Retasu had just woken up to the first rays of a bright new day. The birds were chirping, the morning dew was still fresh, and everything from the day prior seemed to be nothing more than a bad dream, until they looked at Minto and saw the outside of the cloth stained with dried blood.

"We need to find water and cleaner garments to dress the wound, not to mention some source of food. We're almost out," Retasu sighed. "I could've sworn I heard water somewhere nearby, and since Minto can't walk, I was thinking about going ahead by myself for a bit and then informing you if I find anything."

Keiichiro nodded. "That seems to be the best option we have at the moment. We're counting on you, Retasu."

The emerald-haired girl nodded and rose determinedly, throwing her knapsack over her shoulder. With a stubborn lift to her chin, she left the clearing.

_We have no idea how immense this forest is_, Retasu thought. _If we run out of food, we could starve to death. They're depending on me. I can't let them down._

She walked for what seemed like forever, trying to keep her hearing focused on anything that sounded like water, keeping her eyes peeled for any sign of bushes with edible fruit. After walking for an additional twenty minutes and still seeing no sign, she was beginning to lose hope and her feet were starting to throb once more. She wanted to sit down, but knew that if she did, she would be giving up, and she was not one to back down from a challenge. If she _was _that type, she would have abandoned Princess Ichigo's castle long before.

Closing her eyes and inhaling sharply, she concentrated every one of her senses on finding a local body of water. After all, it was her favorite element. She tried to block out the sound of the birds chirping and the rustling from nearby rabbits in the bushes. She focused and focused, and for the next 5 minutes, hadn't heard anything. She was about to give up when she heard a rather large splash coming from ahead of her.

Even though her feet were exhausted and her body was even more so, she hurried forward and hid behind a tree, being careful not to step on any twigs or rocks. Chances were that the splash was caused by a human or a rather large animal. If it was a human, it could have been a guard from Princess Ichigo's kingdom. Slowly, she peeked from behind the tree, only to be rewarded with a sight of one of the handsomest boys she had probably ever seen.

He had light blonde hair and aquamarine eyes, and he was swimming through a small pond. Most of all, he was... shirtless! Now Retasu wasn't the type to be brazen, but when such a tantalizing sight presented itself, she wasn't just going to turn away like a shy schoolgirl. However, a bright red blush did rise to her cheeks. She took a small step forward, and jumped as her foot snapped a small twig in half that lay at the base of the large oak.

She quickly threw herself behind the tree again, and heard the water splash as the boy turned around quickly in the water. "Who's there?" he called imperiously.

She held her breath and closed her eyes, desperately hoping that he wouldn't catch her. How was she going to explain herself?_ "Oh hi, I was just sitting here gazing at your muscled chest while you were swimming half-naked."_

After a few moments, the boy simply shrugged and got out of the water, drying himself off with a piece of cloth before shrugging into peasant clothes. _He must work at the market or something_, Retasu thought, watching him put on a large worn brown cape and walk away from the pond.

She clutched a hand to her chest and waited perhaps another ten minutes before she actually moved from behind the tree. He had to have been long gone by now, and she knew that if Minto, Keiichiro, and herself were quiet while washing up and drinking, even if he was relatively close he wouldn't hear them.

Turning resolutely, she began walking back in the direction in which she came, placing twigs in a certain pattern along the path so she knew where to go.

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They were all back at the pond, and Keiichiro had offered to go stand somewhere a few minutes away with his back turned so Retasu and Minto could properly wash up. They soaked their clothes and then wrung them out, hanging them from a tree branch to dry. Retasu lovingly took the bandage off of Minto's wound, only to be greeted with a sight that wasn't anything friendly.

The bite in her leg was beginning to turn a weird green color, and looked to be quite puffy. It looked as if it was getting infected, and Retasu put extra effort into cleaning the bandage and the wound.

Then slowly lowering herself into the water, she sighed and felt a new energy rush through her. It felt so good to be immersed in such clean, clear water. Reaching up onto the embankment, she grabbed Minto's hand and helped lower her into the water as well, helping her wash her hair and body the best she could. After all, Minto looked like she was about to slip back into unconsciousness.

A few minutes later, they put their clothes on, though still wet, and called Keiichiro over to take care of his business. Walking a little bit further in the path with Minto slung over her shoulder, Retasu found a couple bushes with small berries on them, and from what she had learned from sneaking into the library late at night at Princess Ichigo's, she knew these were raspberries, and perfectly edible.

"Thanks for finding that pond," Keiichiro stated as he walked up, drying his hair with his tattered shirt. "It feels so good to be somewhat clean again. I can't even describe the feeling I had when I first got in the water."

"Same with me. Guess what else I found?" she smiled, gesturing to the bushes beside her. "There's enough here for all three of us to have a small meal. Guessing that we haven't been eating regularly in a while, our stomachs have probably shrunk, so we'll get full quick... but we can wash one of the knapsacks and pick some to take with us."

"Sounds like a plan. I'll go wash mine. We have to clean the raspberries off, too. Be back soon."

As he walked off, Retasu began picking berries off of the bush and putting them on her knapsack. After a few minutes of working, Minto coughed loudly, and began breathing heavily, as if she had just been running. Retasu looked at her friend sympathetically. "I'm so sorry, Minto. This is all my fault. If I hadn't persuaded you to come along..."

The girl opposite her opened her eyes a bit and smiled slightly, her breathing still harsh. "Retasu, how many times do I have to tell you? I came along because you're one of the only friends I've ever had. I love you, and I'm not going to let any harm come to you."

The emerald-haired girl teared up and clasped her friend's hand tightly. "I promise, we're going to find the nearest town and get you treated by the best doctor we can find."

She didn't know if the other girl heard her, however, because she was beginning to nod off again. It didn't matter. Retasu was going to keep her promise, she would make sure of that.

Once Keiichiro returned, she took the berries and went to go wash them, leaving Minto and Keiichiro to have some private time if they needed it. Once she was done washing the berries, she popped one into her mouth and nearly melted. They were sweet and juicy and cold, and she thought she had died and gone to heaven.

Turning to leave the small pond, right before she left the clearing, something caught her attention. There was something glittering on the ground just beneath one of the bushes. Placing the berries right beside her and kneeling down, she reached under the bush and pulled out something round.

It looked pretty plain at first, but she turned it around and gasped. It was solid gold, and there was a gold chain hanging from it. There were blue and orange circles all around the circle with intricate designs, and a large sapphire in the middle. It looked like it belonged to royalty. _But what is it doing out here?, _Retasu asked herself.

There was only one thing she could think of.

_That boy was the prince?!_

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Authoress Notes

I'm sorry if it seemed so rushed. Truth is, I did this the day before. Hopefully you all like it though! I tried my best.


	7. Chapter 6: Castles & Daydreams

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Six (Castles & Daydreams)**

**February 20****th****, 2008**

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Though she knew she was jumping to conclusions, the way that the pendant looked and the materials it was made of made it easy for her to assume that it did belong to some type of royalty. The only other person she had seen was him, but it was possibly that it belonged to someone else.

Returning to the bushes where Minto and Keiichiro still sat, Retasu kneeled down, placing a hand on her friend's forehead. "She's getting a fever."

Keiichiro nodded. "It looks as though she's getting sick and her bite is getting infected. We need to find a town, and quick… or Minto might…" He trailed off, leaving the rest of it up to Retasu's imagination. And what she was imagining wasn't pleasant.

"We'll definitely find something," Retasu stated, nodding determinedly. "There's no way we're going to die here in this forest. There are many things planned for us."

Keiichiro chuckled. "I always did like your optimism."

"We should get going. The sooner we hit the road, the better chances we have at finding a doctor to treat Minto." They both rose and brushed the dirt from their backsides, and Retasu watched as Keiichiro hoisted the unconscious Minto onto his broad back. "Oh! Keiichiro! When I was washing the berries by the pond, I found something underneath one of the shrubs there."

She held out her hand, and even though she had seen it before, a shaft of sunlight caught the sapphire and held it, making the large gem shimmer. She could hear Keiichiro's intake of breath as well. There was something about the pendant that was just captivating.

After a moment of collecting themselves, he nodded. "This is a sign that there must be a place nearby with actual people. Perhaps a town. We need to hurry. Minto is steadily getting worse."

Retasu nodded, tucking the pendant safely into her knapsack, and they both began their mission to find something, _any_thing, to help Minto before she got any sicker.

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A couple miles away, a town was getting ready for its 10th annual street parade, shopkeepers bustling about trying to set up stalls to sell food before the mad rush began to catch a glimpse of the important people riding through it.

As one aquamarine-eyed boy was getting dressed, he thought about what he had experienced down at the pond. It was his little safe haven, and to think that it had been discovered by someone else was horrible. That was the place he went to get away from everything.

As he slipped his white tunic over his head, he felt weird. _It feels like there's something missing…_ Looking down at his chest, he realized what it was.

"My pendant!"

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An hour later, Retasu and Keiichiro were still going strong. If there was a town nearby, it meant that they could finally put their feet, and minds, to rest. Knowing that they could both simultaneously rest their feet and get Minto treated, even if it was by some cheap crazy herbalist, that was enough to keep them going. They had to try something.

"I can feel her body heat through my clothes. It's getting worse," Keiichiro stated, shifting her a little so that she wouldn't fall off. Her grip was becoming looser as the minutes ticked by.

"Let's pick up the pace," the other girl replied, even though as they did, their feet screamed in protest.

Retasu looked around, trying to occupy her mind from the burning sensation her feet and legs were giving off. She was trying hard to appreciate the beauty of the wilderness around her, the beautiful trees and lush green bushes.

If she hadn't of been paying attention, she probably would have missed it. "Keiichiro! I see something!" Far off in the distance, her eyes could faintly pick up a piece of something tan, something that was unnatural from the rest of the colors of the forest, and it had vines growing all over it. "Stay here, I'm going to go look and see what it is."

"Be careful, that goes off of the path, you don't know what could be in it."

She didn't care if her feet were throbbing, she didn't care if her stomach resembled an earthquake, all she cared about was finding civilization so Minto could be taken care of. She ignored the cuts as the rough dead twigs and plants scratched at her legs and kept going until she came across another path. It was twice the size as the one they were traveling before, and Retasu called out, "Keiichiro! Come over here, there's a path!"

He seemed to take a little slower in getting over there, and grimaced when he saw Retasu's bloody calves. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Look! It's a wall," she explained eagerly, and she could swear that somewhere in the distance she could hear clamoring and people talking. "I think we found a city!"

Keiichiro smiled. "I think if we continue on this path, we'll eventually get to the front gates. Let's keep going."

New strength and determination rose in them as they continued to make their way down the worn dirt path. _Just wait, Minto. Everything will be okay._

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It was beginning to become nightfall, and Keiichiro and Retasu were worn out yet again. They knew that they wouldn't be able to continue on any more that night, so Keiichiro propped Minto up against the wall and put her head on his shoulder, promptly dozing off himself. They didn't want to stop, but Retasu had said that if they kept going, they would collapse and all three of them would die.

Once Retasu was sure that the two had fallen asleep, she walked a little ways farther, and then used the vines to hoist herself up over the wall. She gasped at what she saw. About a mile away from where she was was a bustling little town full of lights, cattle, and what seemed like some type of festival. Up above all of the shops and inns, on a small hill overlooking the entire city, was a castle.

Retasu smiled a little as she stared at it. _I wonder if there's any handsome princes that would come and rescue us_, she thought, letting her mind take her over. She laid there with her head on her arms, daydreaming about what life inside a castle as a royal person would be like.

There would be balls with lavish dresses, and sumptuous feasts, giant libraries full of books of wisdom and knowledge, sophisticated people to converse with… It seemed like a fairy tale.

Little did she know, she was going to be part of it.

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Authoress Notes

So Ryou has finally been introduced to the story. (For those who didn't realize who the boy in the pond was, SHAME ON YOU!) I actually wrote this ahead of time for once, but I opted to make you wait instead. HAHA! I'm mean. [;


	8. Chapter 7: Parades & Pendants

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**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Seven (Parades & Pendants)**

**March 20****th****, 2008**

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The sun was already high in the sky by the time Retasu and Keiichiro were able to rouse themselves from their sleep. They could hear Minto's shallow breathing, and both recognized that they needed to find help, and fast.

Keiichiro looked over at the emerald-haired girl with an apologetic look on his face. "I don't want to move her. It's possible if we take her from this spot her fever could just get higher."

Retasu nodded. "I know we're very close to the city, so I'll go on ahead and try to find a doctor. You stay here and try to keep her cooled off the best you can." She leaned down and placed a quick kiss on the top of her fevered friend's head. "Everything will be fine."

Retasu didn't know if she was saying that more for Minto's sake, or for her own. She knew that if she gave up and something happened to Minto, she wouldn't be able to forgive herself.

She grabbed the worn knapsack from the ground beside her and stood, brushing off her clothes. As she started towards the city she had gazed at the night before, she knew it wasn't going to be an easy task to get there. And even when she did, she didn't have any guarantee that someone was actually going to help them.

She clutched the pendant close to her chest. Maybe if she showed some of the citizens there the pendant that she had they would help her. It did seem like it belonged to royalty, after all.

After a few minutes of walking, she could hear in the distance a loud trumpet sound, and a lot of cheering. Looking back over her shoulder, she vaguely wondered if Keiichiro could hear it, too. Maybe that was a sign.

Trying to push herself forward even faster, she kept walking determinedly.

She never knew what she would see as she walked through the city gates. It was breathtaking. There was a line of citizens for miles, all of them clapping with giant smiles on their faces. And in the center of those lines was what seemed like a parade of royalty.

She made her way slowly towards the group of people, managing to find a spot where she could work her way to the front. She had never seen people so regal, horses so fine, jewelry that shone so brightly in the morning sun.

Moving her eyes slowly down the line of royalty, she was breath taken. Even in Princess Ichigo's kingdom they had never had anything like this before. There were no parades. The Princess would have had to command everyone to be there and to force plastic smiles on their faces.

She tore her eyes from the line of regal individuals and looked down to the ground. What would happen to the three of them when Princess Ichigo caught up to them? There wasn't any way that she wouldn't search for them. Retasu was her favorite person to torture and toy with.

Keiichiro and Minto had told her once it was because she was one of the prettiest girls inside the castle, whether it be a servant or not. Personally, Retasu didn't think she was prettier than the princess. Her eyes bugged out slightly, her knees too thin, her arms too skinny and scrawny.

She tried to push those kind of thoughts from her mind. Right now, her main focus was on finding help for herself and her friends. If she didn't, she wouldn't have to even worry about Princess Ichigo finding them.

She was about to turn away to try to find someone that she could ask for assistance when a shimmer of gold caught her eye. She lifted her head to stare up at the royalty once again and locked eyes with the most intense pair of aquamarine eyes she had ever seen.

A shiver ran up her spine as she watched him look her up and down, and she subconsciously tried to cover up the dirtiness of her body. And when she saw him looking at her chest, she blushed.

But she soon realized it wasn't because of her breasts. It was the pendant. It had come uncovered from the tatters of her outfit, and everyone could have seen it. She quickly covered it with her hand, but he had already seen.

She was almost in shock as he dismounted from his horse. The crowd began cheering, but the uproar died down as he approached her and leaned over to whisper in her ear, "Run."

The sound of his voice sent shivers down her spine. He sounded like a predatory cat. He grabbed her hand and then ran off, dragging her along with her. She tried to pull her hand from his grasp, but his grip was too strong. She ran along behind him, casting a look over her shoulder to see all of the citizens of the town gaping.

With how tired she was, she could feel her legs already starting to give out.

_Where is he taking me??_

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Authoress Notes

This came like, RIGHT before midnight. I'm so glad I was able to finish it on time though. I just barely got off of work, so I'm sorry that I didn't update sooner in the day. Hope to see you all in a month! (:


	9. Chapter 8: Begging & Pleading

**xxxxx**

**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Eight (Begging & Pleading)  
****April 16****th****, 2008**

**xxxxx**

Retasu didn't know where she was being pulled, but all she knew was that her heart was pounding in excitement. Never before had something like this happened to her. She wondered if it was because of the aspect that she didn't know what was happening, or because the most handsome boy she had ever seen was holding her hand. And not only that, the _Prince_.

That wasn't her main concern right now, however, she had to remind herself. This was about finding help for the three of them. Luckily, they hid around the corner of an abandoned house, the golden-haired boy peeking around the corner until the castle guards had passed them up.

"Where did you get that pendant from?" he demanded harshly, turning so his aquamarine eyes pierced into her emerald ones.

"I-I found it on the bank of a small lake in the middle of the forest. You see, me and my friends are traveling-"

He cut her off. "I command you as Prince of this kingdom to give it back to me. Not only is it thievery, but it's a family heirloom. This could be considered treason in our kingdom."

Retasu shook her head, clasping the pendant even tighter against her body. "You need to let me explain. I'm not giving this back until you hear what I have to say. My friends & I escaped from another castle. We're servants, but we were treated extremely harsh. My friend got bitten by a wild wolf, and her bite is infected. She has a very high fever and she might die. Not to mention that my other friend & I are exhausted from starvation and our feet are tired and blistered. We need help. _Please_ help us. If you do, I'll give this back."

He stared at her for a few moments, his eyes boring into hers. Slowly, a small cocky smirk made its way onto his face. "You do know that as the heir of the throne of this kingdom, I could easily have you arrested and thrown into the dungeons."

Retasu looked down at her knees as tears began to rise to her eyes. "Yes, I'm quite aware of that. But I hope that you'll help us from the goodness of your heart. I have nothing left to offer. And if you don't help us, it's very likely that all three of us will die."

Ryou didn't know what it was, but something about this girl was tugging at his heartstrings. When he saw the tiny tears gather in the corner of her eyes, he felt like doing something to erase their presence. He normally wasn't a very gentle person, and was known to be a rather cold and callous person.

But he couldn't place his finger on it. There was something…

**xxxxx**

_**Ryou ran into his bedroom, crossing his arms indignantly as he tried valiantly to ignore the presence of his mother. She smiled slightly and placed herself on the edge of the bed, and even Ryou could see from the corner of his small eye that her lip was quivering. She was trying so hard from letting him see the tears that were threatening to come out.**_

"_**Ryou, I don't know where you got this temperament from. Neither your father nor I have it… maybe one day you'll grow out of it. But if you don't, I assure you, there will be someone who comes along and melts the ice from around your heart. And when that special somebody does, you'll finally know the true meaning of being alive."**_

**xxxxx**

He vaguely wondered why something like that had popped into his memory at a time like this. Unless… his mom was right, and this was the person who was supposed to do something about the "ice around his heart"?

At the time, Ryou had had no idea what his mom had meant, and he hadn't wanted to understand. But now, looking at this girl with her head in her knees, small sobs racking her body, all he knew was that he wanted to comfort her… and the feeling was extremely foreign to him.

His first instinct was to push it away and act as if nothing had happened, as if he had never seen the pendant, as if he had never exchanged words with her. But he had to get it back. It was an heirloom that had been in the family for generations.

With a prolonged sigh, he rose to his feet, wiping his brow. "All right, all right. Shut up already. I'll have the castle's doctor take a look at her. Where is she?"

Retasu rose to her feet as a small smile made its way to her face. Of course, she was still scared of this Prince. He didn't seem to have a temperament too much different from the Princess. But it was very likely that he was much more compassionate.

She nodded and began the trek back to the location of her two friends, hoping that their conditions hadn't changed for the worse.

When they arrived at the site of their friends, Keiichiro was conscious, but barely. Apparently the lack of food, sleep, and water had gotten to him. "Retasu? Did you manage to find someone?"

"Yeah, I did. Don't worry. He's going to help us."

He smiled, shaking before passing into unconsciousness.

Ryou leaned down to look at the two. "Well, you're right. Your friends are in pretty bad shape. Give me the pendant and I'll go back to the castle to get help." He extended his hand and looked up at the emerald-haired girl.

She clutched the jewelry to her chest. "I'm sorry, but I told you, I'm not going to give you this back until they're treated. If it's so important to you, bring your soldiers here and have them take us to the castle." She was determined to have him help them. She knew how people were about their word, that most were just take, take, take. It was using up all the remaining strength she had to keep from fainting. She had reached her breaking point, as well.

She noticed the look in his eyes, and knew that he knew she was about to give in to her tiredness.

He sighed and ran a hand over his eyes. "I know you're exhausted. Just… lay down and go to sleep. I'll go get my men and come back to get you three. Then I'll take you to the castle."

"How do I know that you're not just going to wait until I'm asleep, take the pendant, and leave us here to die?"

He smirked. "Usually, a prince keeps his word to a damsel in distress."

She blushed slightly and looked down quickly to avoid his laughing eyes. "Fine. I do need to sit down…" Lowering herself slowly to the ground, she reached over and felt Minto's forehead. "Hang on. Help's coming." With a frown, she slowly slumped forward into unconsciousness herself.

Noting the way she had felt her feverish friend's forehead and the care and loving that had been in her voice, Ryou knew that he couldn't just leave them there to die. With a shrug and a sigh, he began the walk back to the kingdom gates to fetch a few guards.

_This is going to be interesting_, he thought.

**xxxxx**

Authoress Notes

I hope it's not too boring. I feel like I'm starting to lose my pizzazz as a writer. I'm trying to finish this story as soon as possible, but work and school keep me so busy. Hope you enjoyed. Review!


	10. Chapter 9: Giving & Receiving

**xxxxx**

**Fearful  
****Moon Kitty 2005  
****Chapter Nine (Giving & Receiving)**

**June 13th, 2008**

**xxxxx**

Things felt so sluggish when she slowly cracked her eyes open. She could hardly feel her body, it felt like she had just participated in a brutal street fight. She could faintly make out voices to her right, but she couldn't recognize them. Suddenly her vision of the ceiling was blocked by shimmering emerald hair.

"Minto! Are you okay? Are you better now? The doctor here took good care of you. How are you feeling?"

Minto could hear Keiichiro chuckle and Retasu looked over at him. "Give her a rest, she's been through a lot." She saw Keiichiro lean over her cot and smile. "We're glad that you're okay. If you need more time to rest, we'll take our leave."

Minto shook her head and whispered, "I'm fine. How long have I been asleep for?"

Retasu frowned. "Around 5 days. Keiichiro and I had collapsed from exhaustion and we didn't wake up until last night."

"What time is it now?"

"Midday," Keiichiro replied, slipping an arm under her shoulders to prop her up against the pillows in the infirmary. He handed her a glass of water and helped her to sip from it. "I saw that you were stirring a little while ago, so I asked if it was at all possible for a maid to bring some food."

"Maid?" She set the glass of water down and glanced at her surroundings inquiringly. She had just now noticed where she was. "Who's castle is this? Don't tell me…" She looked at Retasu with an expression of fear.

Retasu simply smiled and shook her head. "No, Ichigo didn't find us. We're in Prince Ryou's castle."

_Prince Ryou?_ She looked down at her hands and folded them in her lap. "Do you think… we're going to become his slaves as soon as we're well enough?"

Retasu and Keiichiro honestly had no answer. They both looked down as well. They had both been contemplating that since they had woken, and were fearing that that was exactly what was going to happen.

The door opened and a shy plump woman entered, placing the tray on a small table by the bed and bowing to the three of them. "The King has requested that the three of you report to the throne room once the young lady is finished with her meal. There should be some crutches in the closet over there that she can use to transport herself until her wounds healed."

She was about to leave, but Retasu stopped her. "Is there any way you would know why the King would want to request to speak to us? Surely he must've said something…"

The girl shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. He doesn't discuss private matters with the servants."

Nodding to the three respectfully, she took her leave from the room, leaving them to wonder why the King was so urgent to speak to them.

A few minutes later, the door opened again and in stepped a tall boy with sandy blonde hair and turquoise eyes. He looked straight at Minto, and she shivered. Something about his eyes felt like a feline waiting for its prey. "So I see you're awake now. How are you feeling?"

She nodded a bit and looked down at her hands. "A little better, thank you."

He looked over at Retasu and she blushed. It seemed whenever they made eye contact she could barely keep her heart under control. "We had a deal, hand the pendant over. My father's about to speak to me and if I don't have the pendant on, who knows what he'll do?"

Retasu nodded and handed the pendant over to him, making sure to avoid touching hands. She knew that if she did, he would definitely notice how red her face was getting every moment that he was in the room.

Leaving the room after a slight nod in Retasu's direction, the three turned to each other and decided that they should probably start making their way to the front of the castle to speak to the King. None of them wanted to have this discussion, for they knew it was very possible that the King would send them back to their home kingdom.

They had no idea what kind of ruler Ryou's father was, but if he was anything like his son, the chances that they were to be sent back were more than likely.

Keiichiro grabbed the crutches from the closet and helped Minto out of bed, the three of them trudging slowly to the throne room.

**xxxxx**

"So, I noticed the three of you have traveled to great lengths to get here. Dehydration and infection plagued the three of you. Tell me, where did you come from?"

Keiichiro spoke first. "Your Majesty, with all due respect, we would rather not tell you from whence we came. Think of us as simply travelers that came across your kingdom and were in desperate need of help."

"Our kingdom doesn't just give away medical service for free. What do you plan to do to return all the hard work and effort our doctor gave?"

The three looked at each other, unsure what to say. They knew that this was the moment they had been dreading.

"I say we make them our slaves," Ryou stated from the sidelines, eyeing Retasu warily with his arms folded in front of him. "After all, it's the least they could do for all the medicine and time we had to put into them."

Retasu looked down at her feet and felt her stomach plummet. They had been free for such a short time, and now they were already being forced back into slavery. What had she done to deserve this?

The King glanced at his son before looking at the three before him. "That does sound like a good idea, but I have a feeling that there's more to this traveler story than you're letting on. Don't worry. In our kingdom, slaves actually have a voice, and I don't believe in abuse. You'll be safe here," he said, winking at Retasu. "You're free to move about the castle as you please, unless there's a task that needs to be completed. What are your names?"

"I'm Retasu, this is Keiichiro, and Minto."

"Well, Keiichiro, what are your favorite things to do?"

He looked surprised that someone of higher class than him was actually taking an interest in what he enjoyed to do. "Um, well, Your Majesty, I really like to brush and saddle horses. They're such majestic creatures."

The King smiled and said, "Very well then. Your main duties will be to lather down the horses when they come in from their daily runs, and to brush them, make sure their hooves are kept in top shape, so on and so forth."

Keiichiro let out the faintest hint of a smile. "Thank you, Your Majesty."

"And you, Minto?"

She blushed and looked down. "I really like to cook and take care of animals."

"All right. Your job will be to help Purin in the kitchen with preparation of meals and to make sure the livestock are fed every night, once you're well enough to walk, of course," he stated, earning a small nod from the midnight blue-haired girl.

"Yourself, Retasu?"

"I like to sew and to clean. Cooking is fun as well, but it's not exactly my forte."

"Then I guess that decides what we're going to do with you. Ryou is extremely messy and is always tearing his clothes during riding and other activities. You'll be his personal maid, and your duties are to make sure that his wing stays clean and his clothes stay mended. After all, it wouldn't do for him to go out in public and have holes in his shirt, now would it?"

Even though she nodded, she was far from happy with her assignment. That meant that she would be around Ryou far more than she intended. With the way he had been looking at her lately, she didn't doubt that it was very possible he would treat her the same way as Ichigo had. She shivered slightly.

"Well, that's all for now. Zakuro will show you to your quarters and give you your new outfits. There's no way I would let you stay in those haphazard sacks. You are dismissed."

The three bowed slightly and turned, making their way from the room, following the purple-haired girl from the throne room.

And the entire time she walked, Retasu could feel a pair of aquamarine eyes boring into the back of her head.

**xxxxx**

Authoress Notes

It took me almost a whole day to write this because I kept getting distracted. I don't have a very good attention span. :x Let me know what you thought.


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